Correlation
by Asuka Kimi
Summary: 50 shots challenge of Puzzleshipping (along the way) and Prideshipping (eventually).


****Yugioh © Takahashi Kazuki****

* * *

Howdy viewers, I'm around with another Yu-Gi-Oh! piece. This is a challenge of 50 shots, no longer than 100 words, one paragraph, no more than 3 sentences (comma overdosed), a little spoilers of Movie 2016, a little of manga nostalgia, a little of Puzzleshipping and Prideshipping, a little of Mokuba, Mahad, Mana, and Egyptian Gods, and lots of typo & grammar mistakes.

I hope you still enjoy reading.

* * *

 **1\. Tangible**

"If possible, I never want you go," Yuugi confessed, tears brimming in the corner of his eyes threatened to fall but he tried to hold them in instead of asking how and why his one and only partner was standing before him, pretty much alive. Atem wordlessly opened his arms and closed them once they were full of his Aibou, it was then their tears fell, "I can touch you now," He whispered in Yuugi's ears and received a breathy chuckle muffled by his neck.

* * *

 **2\. Right**

"Of course he will go home and stay with Yuugi," Jounouchi announced, getting in Kaiba's personal bubble. Sapphires narrowed into slits, Kaiba inwardly sneered at how the nobody before him cowered under his threatening aura, "That's never up to you or Yuugi to decide, it's _his_ choice."

* * *

 **3\. Stalemate**

"He's different from you as a living organism, and too much for you to handle," Mahad glowered, shielding his Pharaoh from view of the glaring reincarnation of his former fellow High Priest. "But Mahad," Atem touched the upper arm of his Guardian Priest, gaining not one but two pairs of eyes and their undivided attention on him, "It's also because of him that I become what I am," Almost rolled his eyes at Kaiba's triumphant smirk at the scowling Mahad, Atem continued, "Partly." And the two taller males went back to stare each other down.

* * *

 **4\. Untold**

"Pegasus was manipulated to make Duel Monsters for me to regain not only Mahad and Mana but also my Three Phantom Gods, and Kaiba created the whole Duel Links to bring _Diaha_ in the modern time, purposely attracted Aigami, no, the darkness of the Millennium Items to himself," Atem shook his head in mild dismay, "Knowing I would get bored quickly with just watching." Yuugi nodded in understanding, "If he had seen the Ceremonial Duel, would he understand why you played Osiris in your last turn?"

* * *

 **5\. Idiots**

Yuugi always was Atem's one and only Aibou, he always looked at him, watched him, did everything with him, that was why he knew everything about Atem, especially the part about Atem's very high sensitivity to others' feeling toward Yuugi but hopelessly dense when it came to himself. The breaking point was when Yuugi had to openly admit as he watched yet another duel between those two, "The more I look at them, I feel like I'm turning to an idiot myself." Mokuba nodded in agreement with him, sinking further into his chair watching their still very much intense duel.

* * *

 **6\. Bitter**

"You can't duel him forever, or at least until the day he finally wins," Yuugi said one night as he sprawled on Atem's bed. "It's not the matter of winning and losing anymore, Aibou." Atem's cryptic smile as he said that got Yuugi's eyes widened, and for the first time the friendlier of the two had never hate losing so much, whereas it never bothered him before.

* * *

 **7\. Vanity**

He stood watching Blue Eyes White Dragon, only saw his most faithful servant and overflown with immense pride for his soul monster, not the heartbroken pain of lost for the silhouette of the woman his deceased predecessor had fallen in love with; he was Kaiba Seto, the perfection in a creature worthy of Atem, more than anyone else ever was, include Yuugi.

* * *

 **8\. Freedom**

"It's only the matter of opinion, Jounouchi-kun, while you see his actions like a disease, what makes me any better than him if you ever know what I did under Yuugi's name before you all recognized there were two of him at the time," Atem closed his eyes to the group staring at him in bewilderment and reappeared in front of Kaiba, only to shove his Rival in the Duel Links pod without a care for anything; Freedom, dueled against Kaiba in the virtual world had been created for them, he felt freedom.

* * *

 **9\. Web**

Atem returned to the netherworld where he was its ruler the same moment his eyes closed to sleep in the realm of the living, not many got to be aware of a _God amongst men_ was right there in their midst. "Please let yourself not involve too deep in matters of mortal," Horakhty advised gently, standing beside him on the balcony overlooking his forgotten Khemet.

* * *

 **10.** **Impatience**

"But Horakhty," Murmured Atem, "There are parts of me still within the mortal." "Soon, Time will bring them back to you," The Creator God of Light reminded him, "This is far from the matter of forbidden between mortal and divinity, Atem, we simply desire not to lose you for another time."

* * *

 **11.** **First**

"You are the first of my many things even before we truly met for the first time." Yuugi stopped dead in the middle of his game coding and slowly swiveled his chair around to face his appeared-out-of-nowhere guest, he blinked at the ancient King lounging in his bed smirking playfully, and turned back to his glaring computer screen, "I am not looking forward to you walk in on me jacking off for the first time." Atem still wouldn't use the front door next time, or every time after that.

* * *

 **12.** **Heart**

Osiris and Ra had no idea how Mahad could stand fighting the three-headed dragon so many times without dying from boredom. The Guardian only sighed, "The original one was a good woman, the second one was my fellow prideful friend during living days, but the third one," He shook his head wearily. "He had kept me close to his heart after I was sent to assist him against the previous holder of Quantum Cube, I thought he was interesting and stayed around watching him until he returned me to our Pharaoh," Obelisk's words efficiently turned the other three into stones.

* * *

 **13.** **Jealousy**

Atem frowned, something was not right in the way Mahad confronting Kaiba this time, something more… _personal_ , "I will not require your assistance this time, Mahad," _When you are rejecting my pulse and channeling it all by yourself_ _in_ our _Duel,_ The disbelief look on his friend's face told Atem that the Guardian Priest was not even aware of it. "What are you doing," Kaiba growled across them on his own battleship, within hearing range of their exchange, moment before he was assaulted with an army of _Kuriboh_ exploded all around his side of the battlefield.

* * *

 **14.** **Mischievous**

Osiris and Ra were more on edge the longer it took for their Pharaoh's return. Obelisk was oddly pleased with this situation, but he carefully hid his mirth when he sensed Horakhty nearby.

* * *

 **15.** **Friend**

Since Yuugi completed the Puzzle, he had become the amnesiac-Atem's only Aibou and first friend; Atem was included in Yuugi's circle of friends by default with every encounter along the way. But Kaiba Seto was Atem's second friend and only Rival, since their very first Duel that ended with the King gave the blue eyes male his first Penalty Game.

* * *

 **16\. Wondering**

"Mana, have you ever wondered why we gave name to feelings," Atem mused absentmindedly, propping his chin in the palm of his hand on the armrest of his throne. The Disciple Magician hummed thoughtfully then she floated closer to Atem, watching her Pharaoh's guarded expression carefully, "Maybe so we can't misinterpret them, but knowing and acting on it are entirely two different matters, Pharaoh."

* * *

 **17.** **Possessiveness**

"Osiris, I can't see anything!" But Osiris was not planning to lift his lengthy body, which was curling around his Pharaoh from head to toe to hide the young King completely from view, and he wouldn't stop growling warningly at Kaiba Seto on the other side of the field any time soon. Kaiba smirked at the threat and raised his hand forward, commanding his Ultimate Dragon to attack, "You can't keep him from me forever."

* * *

 **18.** **Wavering**

Ra was displeased seeing not only Mahad _but_ Osiris brooding in the corner of the throne room. Beside him, Horakhty slightly furrowed her brows, staring intensely at their Pharaoh in the living world, "When did we go wrong," Her tone betrayed her anger at the indicated imperfection they had created.

* * *

 **19.** **Restless**

"Yuugi, when did you realize your feeling for Anzu was not romantic?" Yuugi groaned at the lump suddenly deposited itself on his sleeping body, he wrapped his arms and legs around Atem, treating his bedtime intruder like a teddy and rolled to his side, "There, there, Atem, I've got you," He cajoled gently, patting the King's back like he was a child shaken by his nightmare; he would deal with Atem much later, preferably when it was not 2 in the morning.

* * *

 **20.** **Telling**

"Mana, when you were at a dead end, where would you seek guidance," Atem's face was solemn this time as he sat in his throne, one knee over the other and crossing his arms, waiting almost impatiently for her answer. Mana tilted her head and closed her eyes, choosing cautiously in her mind for all plausible ideas, then the light bulb went off in her head, "I'll go for fortune-telling, come on, shuffle your deck," She urged him eagerly with a big grin.

* * *

 **21.** **Rivals**

Yuugi used to be Atem's _Mou Hitori no Ore_ just as the King was his _Mou Hitori no Boku_ , that was why only he could pick up the tiniest change in his Other Me. Recently, he was in the receiving end of Kaiba Seto's friendly smile once, Mokuba was another one ever got it more often, but when Kaiba smiled at Atem, it was much more than what his and Mokuba ever received from the stoic male combined; the worst part that happened was Atem's return smile to match it.

* * *

 **22.** **Imperfection**

"Your light couldn't reach _it_ the first time," Ra reminded Horakhty in his authorized tone, more than warning her fury was aiming at the deadly wrong target, _himself_ of all the Gods in this land, "That was _when_ it went wrong!" Obelisk calmly interrupted the stalemate by stepping in their view of the other and crossed his muscular arms, looking down at the city, "You are wrong, too, greatly prideful we are that we never admit our creation of a cousin for him was imperfect."

* * *

 **23.** **Unrequited**

"Little Light, you can see it too, can you not," The Black Magician asked Yuugi in his dream. The shorter male sank his fingers in Kuriboh's fur, embracing him with all his might, causing the small creature to squeal and hugged him back in delight, "It is painful to watch, but that's all we can do, Mahado-san," Yuugi whispered in a voice thick with suppressed emotions that got the Guardian Priest's eyes widened in realization.

* * *

 **24.** **Unfairness**

"You are as important as my Khemet to me, that's why I punished those trespassed you the same way people did wrong within her arms as well as those attempted harming her from the outside." Yuugi smiled sardonically at his sweet but no less sincere words, but, "I don't want to be compared with your Khemet, unlike her I would die for you the same way you would die for me."

* * *

 **25.** **Evolution**

"Chasing after you is not looking at the past; people can judge me all they want and the truth proved everything I did, do and will do since then forth are beyond their capacity," Kaiba smirked condescendingly as they stood side by side in his Space Station looking down at Earth, "After all, once they lost motivation in chasing something that seemingly futile to themselves, they made all kinds of excuses in the form of "move on" to stop pursuing it and repeated with every next goal in their life. Unlike them, I don't waste my life running in circle."

* * *

 **26.** **Angel**

Kaiba Seto was an angel in his younger brother's eyes; even if he destroyed someone's life, and cornered someone to end their life, and played dirty to get what he wanted, and tore off the Blue Eyes White Dragon of Yuugi's grandpa so it would not be used against him, and created Duel Disk to win against Pegasus, and built Battle City to defeat the Other Yuugi and ultimately crowned himself King in order to forget the past, and created Duel Links and reanimated the dead King only to duel against him, and left him behind to recklessly pursue Atem.

* * *

 **27.** **Devil**

With how he turned people to mental retards, set people on fire, exposed people for public humiliation, blew up someone's head, left someone to suffer scorpion's bite, painstakingly electrocuted people, forced hallucination in someone's mind, made Mokuba eat his own poison, shattered Kaiba's heart, willingly traded off someone else's soul in exchange for Yuugi's, lured people into a trap and let them fell to the ground from the roof, watched Pandora fallen prey to his own trap all because they trespassed Yuugi and his friends, Atem was far from an angel, but he was Yuugi's guardian devil with celestial wings.

* * *

 **28.** **Touch**

There was an unbelievable truth that given their historical Rivalry, they never had any kind of physical contact with each other since the time Atem had been residing in Yuugi's body; and like it magically happened when Atem was unstable on his own feet for Kaiba to steady him, the blue eyes male was shaken to the core and Atem grounded himself in his throne staring at nothing, all because of one touch. Kaiba wanted more; Atem was stricken by his recognition of the line between life and death rather than God and man.

* * *

 **29.** **Coax**

"You should have sealed the Quantum Cube, it is still not too late now," Horakhty encased him in her arms and soothing light, but Atem didn't feel right in this embrace one bit. Obelisk took on the sight with barely hidden disgust and demanded at the silent Ra, "Stop, stop this now, could you be too far blind to see you are hurting the one we all are supposed to love and protect, what makes a flawed creation any different than us for doing the same thing and more?"

* * *

 **30.** **Unanswered**

"What was your brother's facedown card when I commanded Black Magician to attack him directly that time," Yuugi asked attempting to disperse the awkward tension in the air since Mokuba visit his home. "Whatever it was that left him with 100 LP," The littlest Kaiba droned ignorantly, looking around purposely searching for something, or _someone_ , "I wonder between you and my brother, who would _he_ choose to save in case that meant he had to leave the other to die."

* * *

 **31.** **Masked**

"Of course my choice will always be Yuugi," Atem smirked easily in his throne room watching the exchange in the living world, "Once Life loses her grip on Kaiba, Ma'at will immediately bring him to me," The Pharaoh sighed inwardly at Horakhty's retreating back, hoping he had played his card right to keep the other Gods from forcing Death upon Kaiba, if only for momentarily, and narrowed his eyes at Obelisk's knowing smirk, all the while gripping the Quantum Cube tightly, his means to Freedom.

* * *

 **32.** **Exploited**

It was alright even if Atem had seen his relief at the other's return, Atem wouldn't abuse the knowledge that he _cared_ , to use it against him; it was not the matter of trusting, but rather of knowing. It had gone beyond comprehension, their Rivalry, their friendship; a Rival who had chased after him even in death to meet his first and only friend who had left without much of a goodbye; with their hanging promise as reason for their reunions of the living and death, Atem could always be selfish with Kaiba, he abused that fact every time.

* * *

 **33.** **Anxiety**

"How long can we cheat Life before you got caught," Atem wondered as he started sipping his wine. "What are you afraid of with Death on your side," Kaiba brushed off the concern as casually as it came.

* * *

 **34.** **Dread**

No, it was not the fear of Life and Death, if they had failed to overcome the darkness inside Millennium Ring, everything would have been _lost_ ; the root of his fear was the possible eradication of an existence from Life therefore it would not be included in the Book of the Dead; something simply could never be reborn from _nothing_ and reincarnation was the reuse of the soul or a portion of it, that was how soulmates came to be, they practically belonged to a soul that used to be whole.

* * *

 **35.** **Tie**

"This had gone on for long enough, Kaiba," He had to do this with his own hands, "This time if you lose, you will lose _my name_ ," For their closure, _I will erase my existence from your life_. "If I win, your soul will return to the Puzzle and it belongs to _me_ ," That was the first time Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon reached Infinity Pulse, but Kaiba collapsed and fell into a coma in Atem's arms after both Lights collided; Horakhty shed tear for the first time from the heartbroken on her Pharaoh's expression.

* * *

 **36.** **Compensation**

"Do you not know even Gods made mistakes too, have we been immortal for too long, nursing our pride for longer, that we all forget our original wish was far simple than the complication we had created to attain it?" Ra narrowed his eyes in warning at Obelisk's retreating back, "Where do you think you are going." "To seek forgiveness, that it is still not too late to make amends," Obelisk was a fearless Warrior God, one of the three important essences for Horakhty, the reason why no other God would touch him even if Ra ranked highest amongst them.

* * *

 **37.** **Reminder**

"You lost something each time our paths crossed," Atem brushed the back of his fingers along strong cheekbone, talking with his unresponsive Rival, "But I am still always looking forward to the next time." "You must have realized parts of, if not everything he created all with you in mind, without you none of this could ever come to be, how could you… how could you take his reason to keep living, to move forward away from him," Mokuba stared at him in compassion, rather than accused anger, "What is wrong with symbiosis?"

* * *

 **38.** **Echo**

"I had done something unforgivable," Yuugi gripped Atem's icy hands with his, "I will never forgive myself that I won the Ceremonial Battle, not because you had to lose so you can finally rest in peace, but because I had killed my One and Only Other Self with my own hands and no one ever blamed me for it—" "It was not your fault—" Yuugi shook his head, "You didn't mean to harm him with what you did, sometimes there is just no line between right and wrong no matter how desperate we look for it."

* * *

 **39.** **Lost**

"Make no mistake, you are saved only because of Atem," Horakhty vanished before Kaiba could open his mouth. "Message from _Yours Truly_ ," Obelisk's disembodied voice echoed in the four walls, _"Goodbye,"_ The Millennium Puzzle materialized suspending in the air within a golden light; as soon as the light dimmed, it dropped to the ground and, shattered into pieces.

* * *

 **40.** **Barrier**

"It is protected by _God Phoenix_ so the right pieces will never be joined together," Mahad curled his hands into fists, unable to look at Yuugi in the eyes.

* * *

 **41.** **Waiting**

"Can't we do something, anything; my brother hadn't left the Space Station for a whole month and I only know he is still alive because the Satellite is _still_ working," Mokuba pulled at his hair in hysteria. Yuugi shook his head no, "Leave them be, if we interfere then everything is meaningless, because we make them do something instead of letting them realize what to do on their own, for each of them, for themselves."

* * *

 **42.** **Bond**

"Gozaburo had cheated his way out of our game, he broke the rules, he betrayed me; and you, only _you_ are not allowed to do that to me, Atem," Kaiba rammed his fist in the tube of the machine he had created for the sole purpose to put the Puzzle together, if it only kept failing him then he would do it himself.

* * *

 **43.** **Intertwine**

"This is not like what you would do, Pharaoh," His blue eyes prideful cousin smirked down at him, offering his hand to pull him up, "I am a mere part of myself that loves only Kisara and moved on from the passing of you, the remaining of my soul is now on the other side of the wheel of reincarnation, himself; the Gods might have made mistakes in my creation, Cousin, but he was recreated by me who knew very well what you need as your true friend, he is my perfect creation just for you."

* * *

 **44.** **Piece**

"The Pharaoh had drawn _Devil's Sanctuary_ ," Mana told her Master as they watched the complete Millennium Puzzle cradled in Kaiba Seto's hands, "The entrusted piece that was given to him to seal Ra and summon Obelisk."

* * *

 **45.** **Preach**

"Let him feel love does not mean losing him, Horakhty, the only reason your light could never reach that creation was only because you had no idea how to mend a broken heart," Obelisk wrapped his arm around Ra's shoulders forcefully, ignored the death-glare from the Winged Dragon God, suddenly grinning, "I see you now have an idea or two, and look at what you did!" Osiris curled his snake-like lower body around Obelisk's head, anything to shut him up.

* * *

 **46.** **Hi**

"Um, well, hello," Smiling uneasily, Atem almost shrank under the force of the glare he was at the receiving end of. Kaiba smirked frighteningly, "You have lots of nerves."

* * *

 **47.** **Mommy**

"You can't just up and off yourself like that, Atem, everyone is worry always because we care!" Atem pulled Kuriboh closer to himself and hid the lower half of his face under the brown fur, "Sorry, Aibou," Like a child got scolded by his parent.

* * *

 **48.** **Rings**

"Nii-sama, why are we scouting all the jewelry stores," Mokuba looked around disinterested in the clerk had been trying to get their attention for the last 30 minutes. "You," Kaiba addressed the poor man, "Get me your best craftsmen, I need someone specific in carving and chain."

* * *

 **49.** **Shackle**

"Too much gold, too heavy," Atem winced at the snap of finality when Kaiba secured the new gold chain to his Puzzle, "How I am supposed to move around carrying something heavier than me," He demanded heatedly. "Good," Kaiba nodded, pleased with the given information, "Now you can no longer run too fast."

* * *

 **50.** **Routine**

"That ungrateful, insolent, arrogant human! How dare he—" Osiris covered Horakhty's mouth with his wings while Obelisk grabbed the back of Ra's neck with his hands, "Now now, calm down, if he is truly angry do you think we are still raging here instead of being called to assist him already; you should watch Osiris and ask him learn to share when he figured something out on his own."

End.

* * *

I was very tempted to write a whole story by these shots, but...


End file.
